The Kirkus Prize is one of the richest literary awards in the world, with a prize of $50,000 bestowed annually to authors of fiction, nonfiction and young readers’ literature. It was created to celebrate the 81 years of discerning, thoughtful criticism Kirkus Reviews has contributed to both the publishing industry and readers at large. Books that earned the Kirkus Star with publication dates between November 1, 2015, and October 31, 2016 (see FAQ for exceptions), are automatically nominated for the 2016 Kirkus Prize, and the winners will be selected on November 3, 2016, by an esteemed panel composed of nationally respected writers and highly regarded booksellers, librarians and Kirkus critics.

KIRKUS REVIEW

Even before the fourth volume in the
Poetry Adventures series gets going, Rowland’s cheeky illustration of an island
castaway finding a bottle with jumbled letters spelling “acrostics” in it
effectively conveys the message-in-a-bottle thematic sense of this poetic form.
Much like a whodunit that starts with a body in the library, the acrostic poem
makes no bones about revealing its subject. As Cleary explains, they are
arranged so that “the first letter of each line forms a word or words when read
vertically,” and then “words or phrases built off that first letter help
describe that subject.” The collection’s more successful poems shy away from
listing descriptor after descriptor, as in “Yellow” or “Snack Time.” “Teachers”
creates an inspiring portrait: “They are the superheroes who show up / Each
and every day, not just when some special signal or / Alarm is
activated.… / … / Saving more lives than all those cape-wearing showoffs
combined.” “Poem” captures the challenge of the form with a joke: “Poppies
are red. / Orchids are blue. / Ever rhyme stuff? / Man,
it’s really hard.” Throughout, Rowland’s brightly detailed illustrations neatly
capture Cleary’s playful tone and whatever pun’s to be had.

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